Dragonaut: The Resonance- Some Nights
by EibonVirgo
Summary: Grove Hikari, one of the newest members of the Lindworm Unit, has a lot on her hands when she accidentally forms and empathy link with Gio, the ISDA's rogue Communicator- so, she can see, feel, and hear everything he does! How will this work out, especially as, some nights, Grove doesn't know what she stands for? (OCxGio) (JinxToa)


**Dragonaut- The Resonance: Some Nights**

**Chapter 1: Resounding**

**Hey everyone! This is the first story I'll be posting, so please don't judge me too much! I promise I have more coming!  
Enjoy!**

"Well, Grove, today's the day!"  
"The day for what?"  
"Today's the day I try and Resonate with a dragon! Remember?"  
"Oh, right," I giggled. "Can't forget that! Are you excited?"  
"I don't think I've ever been more excited," Kazuki mused. "But I'm also a little nervous."  
"Don't be!" I urged him happily. "It's not anything to be worried about! Just keep a clear mind!"  
"How did you feel when you Resonated?"  
"It was a little nerve-wracking at first, but it was an incredible experience!"  
"I just hope nothing bad happens," Kazuki muttered, squirming in his seat a little.  
"You worry too much," I laughed. "It'll be fine."  
"Okay," he sighed, then squirmed slightly.  
"Hey, Grooove," Sieglinde called in an exasperated tone. "Come on, Raina's being stupid and calling all of us together."  
"Okay, I'm coming," I said cheerfully, springing up out of my chair and following the small blonde down the hall.  
"What are you so happy about?" Sieglinde grumbled haughtily.  
"Why shouldn't I be happy?" I asked, puzzled.  
"Ugh, your attitude makes me sick."  
"Say what you will," I replied.  
Amadeus walked wordlessly behind us, not delving into the conversation as to irritate Sieglinde more. I'd always thought Sieglinde was sort of a brat, that she naturally had a negative outlook on things. I, having a very ipositive/i outlook on the world, didn't usually get along with her even though I wanted to be her friend. Nevertheless, I preferred to hang around Akira.  
The rest of the Lindworm Unit was sprawled throughout a room that usually served as a meeting place, which was basically a small-ish room that had nothing but chairs and a screen for presentations in it.  
"He-ey, what took you so long, Grove?" Akio joked from where he sat next to Akitsu. "Don't bother her," Lucian snapped, suddenly by my side.  
"Wow, I was only joking," Akio gasped, like he was offended. I giggled. "Aw, lighten up, Lucian."  
Of course, since Lucian was my dragon, I loved him to pieces, but he was sometimes difficult to be around. Raina, in his own spot next to Howling Star, observed the room and, deducing that everyone was present, started his speech.  
"You must all be aware that the Album has been sighted on Earth," Raina began. "and our focus is shifting to catching her."  
"How do you suggest we catch the Album?" Sieglinde sighed unhappily.  
"Maybe you could give a good suggestion or two," Akira retorted. "You iare/i the genius, after all."  
Sieglinde shot her an evil look that seemed to be reoccurring, but ignored the comment otherwise.  
"Maybe we could get, like, a giant glue trap-"  
"Akio, how do you suppose we catch an ioriginal dragon/i with a glue trap?"  
Akio ran a hand through his dark cyan locks. "Well, never mind, then..."  
Akitsu chuckled, brushing her long tangerine hair out of her eyes. "Oh dear..."  
"Well, firstly the Album has been sighted near a boy named Jin Kamishina."  
"A boy?" Machina asked. "Yes," Raina replied. "We aren't sure of his connections to her, but we intend to capture the Album by following him."  
"Kamishina?" I asked. "Wasn't he a pilot or something?"  
"His father," Raina answered. "was the one operating the shuttle that crashed two years ago."  
"Um," I said. "Okay, wow."  
"He has already had contact with the Album, so we plan on bringing Jin Kamishina in ASAP. Sieglinde, you and Amadeus are to take him into custody as soon as you are dismissed."  
"Sure, fine," Sieglinde sighed.  
"The second order of business is our new Dragonaut."  
"You mean Kazuki?"  
"Yes," Raina said. "He is being tested for Resonance as we speak."  
"He was pretty squeamish this morning," Akira commented. "Hope he's doing alright..."  
"I'm sure he'll be fine," I said nonchalantly. "Kazuki's a good guy. He'll be one of us in no time!"  
Through the whole thing, Keichii and Spirytus sat silently in their own spot in the room, not getting too ingrained in the conversation. I hadn't been a Dragonaut as long as Keichii, but we were both pretty new at this.  
"In addition," Raina concluded. "Our newest objective is to capture the Album."  
"What about the kid?" Howling Star asked. "We take him into custody if necessary," Raina answered. "Am I clear?"  
"Yes, sir."  
"Sure, Raina. Whatever you say."  
"'Kay."  
"Whatever."  
"Okay!"  
Lucian ran a hand through his sage-colored bangs. "Are we done here?"  
I laughed a little. "Yes, Luc. We're done."  
"Finally," he grumbled. I got up and hugged Lucian around the waist. "You're so impatient. Why can't you relax for once?"  
"Stop being happy," he grumbled. "Then I'll do what you want."  
I giggled at Lucian's blush, then traipsed out the room to go see if Kazuki was done with his test for Resonance. I think Kazuki deserves to be a Dragonaut. He really worked hard; I should know, Kazuki and I went to the academy together.  
Out in the hallway, I passed by Dr. Kitajima and her orange-haired intern.  
"How did it go with Kazuki?" I asked hesitantly.  
"Kazuki Tachibana has successfully resonated with a dragon," Kitajima told me matter-of-factly. "Yay!" I said happily. "Where is he now?"  
"He should be with his dragon, in lab G-10."  
"Thank you, Doctor," I said politely, and bowed. Then Lucian followed me down the south hallway towards the lab Dr. Kitajima had mentioned. Inside, Kazuki was standing near a glass cylinder.  
"Ka-zu-ki," he said, like he was teaching a newborn how to speak. "Kazuki Tachibana."  
"Welcome aboard, Kazuki!" I said excitedly. He turned and smiled. "Hey, Grove!"  
I walked towards the cylinder, taking in the Communicator that still hadn't hatched. Kazuki's dragon had taken the form of a man who looked in his early or mid-twenties.  
"Grove, meet my dragon, Gio."  
"Um, Gio?"  
"Yeah," Kazuki said. "It's on the sign, didn't you see?"  
"Uh, Kazuki," I laughed. "That says _G-10_."  
"What?" he glanced at the sign again. "Ah, dangit..."  
"No, no," I giggled. "I think Gio's a good name. It sounds about right."  
"Yeah? I think it does too."  
I looked over Kazuki's dragon again; it had a lithe, muscular build and long wavy hair flung out behind it. I wondered about his personality, what Kazuki wanted in a Communicator.  
"Hey, Grove?"  
"Yes, Kazuki?"  
"I'm a little nervous about having a dragon of my own," he confessed sheepishly. "It'll be easy, don't worry," I told him. "Your dragon is your lifelong friend. They're always there for you."  
"I understand that... But Grove... Would you help me?"  
"Help you?" I asked, puzzled. "With what?"  
"You know, help me look after Gio. At least, if I'm not around, I know someone I trust will be there."  
I smiled, touched. "Of course, Kazuki. I'd be happy to."  
Kazuki smiled back.  
There was a crackling of static as a voice rang through the room. "Kazuki Tachibana, you're needed by Commander Sakaki."  
"I'll be right there!" Kazuki said quickly, and ran out.  
I laughed a little at Kazuki's ditziness. Lucian glanced at Kazuki's Communicator. "Doesn't look half bad. Maybe he'll be decent."  
"There's something special about him," I mused. "How can you tell?"  
"I don't know," I sighed. "I just... I know."  
There was a pulse of something.  
-

The truck wobbled violently along the long road, making it difficult for me to listen to Raina's briefing.  
"Akira, go with the special forces and cut off the target's path of retreat. Amagii, you, Akio, and Kazuki take the island's west exit. Grove, you and I will close the net at the north exit."  
I drifted away again as he began talking about the usual protocol for actualization, and my mind left the truck as Kazuki, Amagii, and Akio were unloading.  
Supposedly, Jin Kamishina and the Album were on the run from us, and our orders were to take them in immediately. Commander Sakaki had sent us into immediate action after the Album had gone out of the ISDA's surveillance zones. Now they were supposedly fleeing to the north.  
The truck stopped abruptly again, and Akira rushed out. I could hear her talking.  
"Alright, you two. I've got some questions to ask you, so just come along quietly."  
There was a shift in the air, and I heard Akira yell. "Machina!"  
The Album must've been trying to make a run for it.  
Quickly, Akira jumped back into the truck. "Machina went after the Album and Jin Kamishina; they're heading towards the bridge," she said quickly, and the heavy car lurched forward again.  
"Howling Star," Raina spoke into his communicay. "Intercept the Album at the bridge."  
The truck took more sharp turns, and my stomach lurched violently. Suddenly, a voice call came in on the screen at the front of the van.  
"Amagii has been eaten by Spirytus!"  
That was Kazuki's voice. I just didn't process the rest of what he'd said.  
"What?!" Raina jumped up. I didn't know how he could, the truck was wobbling so badly.  
"Disgusting," Sieglinde grumbled.  
"But his Resonance," I murmured. "It's broken now..."  
"So he can't be controlled," Akira finished. "This can't be good."  
The truck finally stopped in one fast movement, and I almost flew forward into the side of the truck. I made a mental note to drive myself from now on.  
Loading out behind Sieglinde, Raina, and Akira, I took in the full view of the bridge.  
There was a huge burning patch at the center, where flames reached up and touched the sky in cascades of red. Spirytus' roars filled the night, but there was a different light that was clashing with it.  
Spirytus had actualized, but so had another dragon. The Album.  
"So that's a type 3 original," Raina mused.  
"Kind of an impressive dragon," I sighed. "Oh boy."  
"We have to stop Spirytus!" Howling Star said, rushing up to us.  
"Hold on, Howling Star," Raina stopped him. "We can't just yet. Not without authorization."  
Lucian landed at my side, and together, we watched the battle. Lights lit the sky as Spirytus and the Album were locked in combat, and suddenly, the two stopped. They hovered yards from each other, as of they were communicating somehow.  
"The Album is calming Spirytus down," Howling Star said. "It looks like they're communicating somehow," Akira mused.  
Then there was an abrupt whirring of machines. About a dozen crimson helicopters flew over the horizon, all marked with the insignia of the Gillard Army. One by one, they began shooting at Spirytus and the Album, only to be batted away by an even more enraged Spirytus.  
"Idiots," Sieglinde spat, tossing her blonde ponytails.  
Suddenly, into my earpiece, I heard the voice of one of Commander Sakaki's operators. "Lindworm Unit, actualization is authorized!"  
In a way, we all came to life.  
The five of us were let into the little cargo unit to change into our flight suits. Rapidly, I slipped out of my red and black uniform and into the white, red, and blue suit that protected me against all other elements. It was form-fitting and surprisingly comfortable.  
Jumping out of the hold, I met in a line with Raina, Akira, Akio, and Sieglinde. There was a sound of thunder. One by one, Howling Star, Machina, Amadeus, Akitsu, and Lucian Actualized.  
Howling Star became a colossal crimson beast, wings sheathed with cylindrical shields and talons sharper than the spear he wielded.  
In a typhoon of water, Machina transformed into an elegant lilac dragon, beautiful but deadly with sleek opal wings and a roar like waves crashing on a beach.  
The wind shifted and debris flew; the ground shook and Amadeus became a gargantuan steel monster capable of sending planets out of their gravitational orbits. The earth quaked below my feet, flashes of lightning bursting the sound barrier. Akitsu transformed into a scaled tangerine beast, spreading her jeweled wings across the night sky.  
The night was electrified. Stars seemed to burst as Lucian outshined the sun, becoming a burst of light; spreading his bright wings over me, I jumped into the cockpit strapped to his back and pulled back on the reins. "Let's kick it, Lucian!" In return, the golden and ivy dragon let loose a roar, then catapulted itself into the sky after Raina and the others. "All right, everyone," Raina spoke to us through our comlinks, his face showing up on the holographic screen. "our mission is to calm Spirytus and capture the Album."  
"We're gonna capture that gargantuan?" Akio asked incredulously through my earpiece. "I should've visited the Undertaker before I came here!"  
"Akio, not helping!" Akira replied.  
"We can do it," I encouraged. "Right, Lucian?"  
In response, Lucian roared and rolled his huge scaly head.  
We spilt. Akio, Sieglinde, and Raina went after Spirytus. Akira and I went after the Album.  
Lights lit the sky again as Amadeus fired shots after the fast-moving pair of rogue dragons, missing them by_ that much_. Machina spewed clouds of condensation at the Album, dousing its attacks until they were nothing.  
I tugged on Lucian's reins. "Go, Lucian!" Lightning ripped through the sky and Lucian catapulted spheres of radiant golden fire in retaliation to the Album's barrier attacks.  
The huge white and rose dragon blocked it swiftly with another sunny-colored barrier, then suddenly took out a Gillard helicopter. The red helicopter was knocked out of the sky and fell down to the bridge, where it flew down towards a young man who looked too stunned to run.  
The Album dove down suddenly, blocking the helicopter in a sphere of golden energy, falling into the sound.  
Spirytus, still enraged, began to fight recklessly with the Album, firing bright spheres of flame at it, then suddenly crashing into the bridge again. With a roar, the Album shifted back and flew again into the sky, its crash landing leaving a gaping hole in the side of the brick overpass.  
I felt a pulse.  
Tugging upward on Lucian's reins, he took a back spiral to avoid the Album flying back towards us. "Steady, Luc!"  
Lucian shot another sphere of light at Spirytus and the Album, who were again locked in a battle.  
They collided and the force sent shock waves across the open sky, making my teeth rattle; the Album's pained cry made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.  
My mind left my body.  
In a dozen more pulses, I felt my consciousness suddenly tear off of my body, and when the feeling-strange and unpleasant, but not painful-subsided, I found myself back at the ISDA headquarters.  
"What?" I said out loud. I looked around and called out, "Luc? Lucian?"  
Getting up, I found that I was in the Lindworm Unit's meeting room.  
Another pulse.  
There was a sort of disturbance in the air of the room.  
The feeling was familiar. But it was too early! Suddenly, there was a quaking and I fell over again.  
I hurried out of the room, forgetting that I wasn't where I was supposed to be. Kazuki had asked me to look after his dragon while I was gone, and that's just what I planned on doing.  
I continued down the hallway, all the way to room G-10. The door had been blown open, and inside, the glass cylinder Kazuki's dragon had found home to was broken and shattered across the floor. What was the dragon's name again...? Oh, gosh...  
I wracked my brain, trying to remember the name Kazuki had given it, then saw the bent sign that read, "G-10."  
"Gio!" I shouted, my epiphany punching at me. "Where's Gio?" I swung the door open again. "GIO!"  
Running along the hallways, I started thinking that Gio might go looking for Kazuki... A Resonance bonds together a dragon and a human, so wouldn't the dragon go looking for its master?  
Turning a corner quick, I slipped across the slick tile and my feet flew out from under me, sending me hurtling into the wall. For a second, I think I blacked out a little.  
Sitting up, my vision clearing, I cringed and rubbed the back of my head. "Ow... DANGIT, stupid floor..."  
Looking up, I realized I hadn't run into the wall. Just a really hard-muscled, really HOT guy. He was looking down on me with the scarlet eyes of a Communicator. Gio.  
"You're Gio!" I burst out, jumping up, but stumbling from a head rush. "Sooooorrrryyyy for bumping into you..."  
He didn't say anything, just turned and kept walking.  
"U-Um," I stuttered. "Y-You do know you're not wearing any clothing, correct?"  
"I have more important things to worry about."  
His sudden reply startled me, but I regained myself quickly. "Wait, Gio, you're supposed to stay here until Kazuki gets back!" Again, he ignored me. "Hey!" I ran after him, grabbing onto his arm to keep him from going anywhere. Gio stared at me for a second, then bumped me away like I was nothing. The force of just a little push shoved me back to the tiles. "Wow, you're almost as stubborn as Lucian!"  
Still, Gio ignored me and kept walking away, turning down another corridor so I couldn't see him anymore.  
"Where are you going? Gio!" I shouted, bothered that he wouldn't listen to me. But of course, dragons only listened to their masters. I should expect nothing less.  
Then there was a throbbing in my head again, and my consciousness tore away. Blinking away the darkness, I found myself back where I should be. Lucian roared; I felt my empathy link with him shudder.  
_Grove_, Lucian thought, his attitude gruff but obviously concerned. _What's wrong?_  
"I'll be fine," I said out loud. "Don't worry about it."  
_Did I... Form another empathy link...?_ I thought, puzzled. Taking to the sky again, I noticed a figure on the ground near the young man I'd seen before. _Gio?_  
Thunder sounded again. _Gio was Actualizing_. In a burst of shadow, a huge black dragon trimmed with spikes of crimson took to the sky, but it wasn't Kazuki riding him.  
The young man on the newcomer dragon's back was of medium size and stature, with unruly dark hair and a blue jacket flapping in the fast wind.  
As Spirytus dove for the Album again, Gio's huge wingspan blocked the other Dragon's attack, sending it flying backward.  
I tugged Lucian's reins again, taking a full 360 just in time to see Howling Star's scalloped wings cut through Spirytus in an instant.  
Had Howling Star just... _killed_ Spirytus?  
I shook myself out of my trance, realizing that the Album was making its escape.  
"Lucian!" A dozen spheres of color shot towards it, only to be blocked by Gio.  
The red and black dragon let out a roar, and my mind spun.  
Did I have an empathy link with him too?  
_Gio!_ I called out through any palpable link that I could muster. _Gio, are you listening?_  
No answer.  
_Gio!_  
This time, I gained an immediate response. Flashes of color exploded behind my eyelids, a spectrum with an eighth color at the end for which I had no name for. _Gio, why are you doing this?_ I tried again, keeping a firm hold on Lucian's reins.  
Whether he replied or not, I couldn't hear. The Album cast another golden barrier over Gio and the person riding him, tearing me away from the focus I'd been embedded in. They fell to the water, but Gio soon recovered, catching the young man and taking off again.  
"It's over now," Akira said.  
"That was Gio," Raina mused. "But what was he doing with Jin Kamishina riding him?"  
"We should head back to HQ," I suggested, wondering if Gio would be there too. "We should report this to Commander Sakaki to make sure he knows what happened, and our next course of action."  
Raina, agreeing with me, steered in to a landing with the rest of us falling in behind.  
Lucian de-Actualized, as did the rest of the Unit. He looked at me, concerned, and I smiled back for reassurance. Howling Star looked upset. He'd just killed Spirytus. I didn't blame him.  
Realizing we were missing another member of the team, I ran to Kazuki's side. "Kazuki, are you all right?"  
I couldn't see his eyes. He was probably upset about Gio.  
Since when did I have a link with anyone else but Lucian? All my other links were too weak to have access to, and they all surfaced on accident.  
I felt for my link with Gio.  
Wherever he was, all that was on his mind was flying. Far away, getting away, leaving. And the Album.  
In my mind, a pretty girl with voluminous long hair the color of a pink sunset stared at me with a Communicator's red eyes.  
_Toa_, rang out.  
_I had to know more._

**What did you think? Leave a comment! Working on chapter 2!  
See ya ;D**

**-Eibon**


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